Monday, April 11, 2011

Summer goals

In about two and a half weeks I have a SUPER AWESOME feature series coming to Sometimes Sweet that I am oh-so excited about...and in the spirit of that feature I thought I would share some of my summer goals. I make summer goals every year, and I think that these goals are always my favorite. In the past I've always had summers free of any responsibility. I was either a student or a teacher, so three months of my life were strictly all about me, and all about fun. In our younger years Hank didn't have much responsibility either, so we would travel all over the place between his summer touring, stay up until all hours of the night (and sometimes morning), I'd read a million books, and do a whole lot of beautiful nothing.

Now though, things are a bit different. Little Henry is my boss, but although I have a lot more responsibility, I am lucky enough to be able to stay home with him, which allows me the freedom to still do a lot of fun things. Now, it may only be April 11th, and it may have snowed on Saturday...but I do consider May the first official start of summer, and that's next month..so, I thought I would share my summer goals with all of you today. Maybe this is jumping the gun a little but I need a little summertime sunshine motivation in my life!

Also: feel free to grab either image and use it on your blog to announce your summer goals too. I took the above photo last summer while on the Jersey Shore. Yes, that (beautiful, lovely) Jersey shore. But like I said, if you'd like to share your goals, please do! And link me in the comments so I can check yours out as well.

1. Compile a summer reading list and complete it by the end of August. I will be sharing this list in an upcoming post.

2. Workout more outside than I do inside. This means: hikes, biking, swimming, long walks at dusk with my boys and Madeline.

3. Bring my D-SLR everywhere. I really need to get back into the habit of using our camera, and what better excuse than capturing all of summer's beautiful moments? I'm envisioning snapping photographs of ice cream, snow cones, beach days, and the lazy afternoons on the square.

4. Start working on our backyard. Our new home has a huge backyard...but unfortunately it's completely unlandscaped. I already have a plan for what I'd like to do, but now it's just putting that plan into motion. By Summer 2012 I am hoping to have it close to completed- extended patio, comfortable and relaxing lounging/seating, green green grass, trees, flowers, and vegetable gardens. So, getting started is a huge goal. And seeing that I have NO experience in gardening or landscaping, I will definitely need my parents' help.

5. Start a family summertime tradition. This will probably happen naturally, but I'm hoping it's a weekly trip to the ice cream parlor followed by a stroll around the square.

6. Make a movie of our East Coast trip this summer. What this means is that I'll have to be sure to keep my Flip Cam out for the entire trip, but it will be totally worth it in the end.

7. Do not get one sunburn or get remotely tan. Sounds weird maybe, but to me this is IDEAL. I like being pale but I tan very easily, and I don't want to damage my skin whatsoever. Big floppy hats and sunscreen are (and will be) my best friend this summer.

8. Get my other thigh tattooed. I'm definitely looking forward to tattooing the front of my left thigh and maybe the backs as well. We'll see.

9. Try a new summer-fresh recipe every week. Grilled veggies, light salads, glazed tofu, berry tarts, anything with pineapple. I'd like to branch out and treat Hank to some delicious meals and desserts.

10. Visit the farmer's market once a week.

So, that's it! Those are my 10 summer goals. I have a few more along the lines of furniture re-finishing projects and around the house to-dos, but those are ongoing and not so much summer-oriented. I am REALLY excited about the above goals though and just writing them out has got me really pumped that summer is so close.

Well, the things I'll be doing this summer are hanging out at a couple of music festivals, participating in a parade of local charities and co-ordinating a summer fayre... but for the rest of the time, I'm looking forward to NOT having anything specific I intend to do. I've just got to the end of two years of scheduling and budgeting for and dealing with home renovations so I'm going to enjoy having weekends and a little money to myself - that's all!

East coast trip?! If you come so far as Maine, I'd love to meet you! :D

I am on my second-to-last day of vacation in Florida right now, and I somehow managed to not get even the slightest sunburn, and I'm as pale as you are! We were at the beach for two days, Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure for two days, and hanging out at our aunt's for the last two. Definitely lots of sunscreen, breaks in the shade, lots of water, and a hat helped.

I am not so great with meeting long term goals but maybe I'll make a mini summer goals list and share it! Thanks Danielle!

Wow! I thought I was the only "weird" who didn't liked to get tanned! And man, I live in Rio! It's summer all year! Haha! So glad to know I'm not alone! Great goals! I may have "borrowed" s(everal)ome of them... ;D

Thank you thank you thank you for being the one person I've ever heard say they want to stay pale. I am also incredibly pale (I joke that my skin is like Casper the ghost's) and I've always felt bad for not being as tan as all my friends. As I grow older though, I realize that I need to not worry about getting some sun on my skin because a) trying to change what I actually am is silly b) it's healthier that way. What a great goal!

Do you have any information about getting tattooed while breastfeeding? I went in to get a new peice and was told they weren't comfortable with it since I was breastfeeding. Ahhh.... the wait while pregnant was long enough : )

I always do a list of summer goals as well. I've started mine. The reading list will be long. Backyard improvements also on the list. And this summer, getting a tattoo is definitely on my list as well! Look forward to hearing about what you read.

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